Sheriff candidates answer T-N questions

From staff reports

Published: Monday, April 28, 2014 at 4:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Sunday, April 27, 2014 at 10:11 p.m.

In the May 6 Republican primary, voters will choose from three candidates who are running for the position of Henderson County sheriff: incumbent Charlie McDonald and challengers Michael Brown and Erik Summey. The candidates recently answered questions from the Times-News about why they are running, crime reduction efforts and school resource officers.

More information about the My 6 primary and early voting can be found at www.hendersoncountync.org/elections or by calling 828-697-4970.

Why are you running?

Charles McDonald: I am running because of a deep conviction that I am in this position for a cause greater than myself, and I feel that I am the only man to carry forward the great work that we have begun in my first two years in office. We are in the process of implementing effective organizational change, modern leadership practices and professional development of our employees in all areas. We have brought accountability to the forefront, starting with leadership. We are well into a process of change and renewed commitment to customer service. We have begun to properly gather statistics and data in order to better direct our resources and agency focus to specific problem solving. Already, this has yielded a 28.86 percent reduction in residential breaking-and-entering and larcenies. We have established rigorous but effective hiring standards and put in place promotional and bonus processes that reward exceptional work and motivation over the old system of “promotion by tenure.” I am running because I am the only candidate with the proven leadership, vision and courage to finish what has been started. I have worked tirelessly for the past two years to earn your support and confidence.

Michael Brown: I chose a career in law enforcement with the ultimate goal of serving my community. I am a lifelong resident of Henderson County and the third generation of my family to serve this county in law enforcement. I earned a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from WCU and have been in state law enforcement for 19 years. I am currently a senior state trooper with the NCSHP. I am married to my beautiful wife Lynn and have three children, Erica, Jessie and a newborn baby Jezreel Grace.

Erik Summey: My decision to run for sheriff of Henderson County did not happen overnight. I worked at the Henderson County Sheriff's Office for 17 years from 1989 to 2006. The majority of my time there was spent working in a supervisory capacity as a sergeant and lieutenant. I have been at the Fletcher Police Department for over five years, the last three years I have been the chief of police of the department.

What are your goals?

McDonald: My goals are to continue the process that we have embarked on to enhance our capacity to gather and analyze data, and develop effective strategies to reduce specific crimes. We will continue to develop inspirational leaders and hire the most qualified personnel as we set in place a new culture of professionalism that will not easily be undone. We will continue to increase our involvement with citizen groups and community partnerships by offering education and support in disaster preparedness, community/security initiatives, and law enforcement support. The office of sheriff is culturally and historically unique regarding its purpose and its relationship with its community. We are its sons and daughters, its brothers and sisters. We are of, and not over, our county. Our effectiveness rests in community trust and support. It is only with that support that we can be “the blue ring around our community” defending against lawlessness and all threats to our safety and well-being.

Brown: This is an excellent opportunity for the citizens of the county to elect a sheriff for the future, who will serve the people of this county for many years to come. We have had five sheriffs in the last 10 years including the current interim sheriff. I want to bring a sense of security to our community and the men and women of the sheriff's office to improve morale within the department. My goal is to provide the most professional, quality law enforcement service to the citizens of Henderson County while being a good steward of your tax dollars. I believe the position of sheriff demands unsurpassed character and integrity. I hold myself to a high ethical standard and will earn your trust and confidence as sheriff.

Summey: I believe there are better ways the Sheriff's Office can be managed to support the employees as well as the community. The department needs to be structured to provide an appropriate amount of women and men working on patrol, investigations, and the communications division. I will give the autonomy to the department heads and supervisors to run their divisions and teams as they see fit. My campaign has five focus points which are to review animal control and enforcement, enhanced efforts on drug enforcement and drug-related crime, fiscal responsibility, courthouse security and school safety, and establishing a victim's services coordinator.

What type of crime do you see posing the biggest threat to our community, and how do you propose to combat it?

McDonald: The crimes are drugs, violence, thefts and neglect of children and dependents. I believe these are the results of a failure of society to stand together against what is wrong, and coming together for what is right. There is a tragic combination of apathy, a sense of helplessness, and an over-reliance on others to fix our problems. Our tendency, as a society, is to look the other way, to avoid rational confrontation and hope that someone else will take care of the problem. The issues with drugs, domestic violence and other crimes will only be effectively stymied by a collective effort by good and moral people who will partner with others, including law enforcement, teachers, pastors, rabbis, business and community leaders, to say “No further! We are taking back what is rightfully ours!” It won't happen overnight, but the collective good can overcome that which is arrayed against it when good people stand up and together for a noble cause. After I am elected sheriff, I intend to move forward to encourage more talented and skilled people from within our community, many who may be retired, to bring their talents and time and pure motives, to the service of Henderson County and its future.

Brown: I believe drug and property crime are at the forefront of issues facing our community. I will re-allocate personnel from seven deputies per shift to nine per shift to increase the number of officers on patrol, who answer calls for service, to enhance patrol coverage and reduce response time in a proactive effort to reduce crime. This can be accomplished by re-allocating deputies from top heavy administrative positions to fill critical, high priority positions. I will re-establish the criminal interdiction team and assign more officers to the investigations unit. I will work to create a drug diversion investigator position to enforce laws pertaining to the illegal use and distribution of prescription medication. I would also work to increase the partnerships we have with the local police departments in the county and the state Highway Patrol in a combined effort to reduce the crimes being committed against our citizens in this county. I will put renewed emphasis on community involvement through Crimestoppers and neighborhood watch programs.

Summey: In Henderson County the drug problem has been, and continues to be, the biggest threat. Over the last 20 years the estimate has typically been that 80-85 percent of the property crime in our county is committed by persons with an addiction to a controlled substance. I have several ways to combat this problem. I worked in and was a supervisor in the narcotics unit at the Sheriff's Office from 1993-2003. I know that the department can do more to combat the distribution of controlled substances coming into our county. During that 10-year period, we worked with the DEA and conducted several historical drug conspiracy cases. These cases are time-consuming, but we focused on, arrested, charged and convicted many persons right here in our community who were responsible for bringing cocaine/crack cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana into our county. The other side to combat the drug problem in our community is through educating our young people of the dangers of drug and alcohol abuse. I will enhance the DARE program to make it more effective in our schools and I will keep the summer DARE camp program. I will also work on an initiative called Drug Free Community project.

The 2012 shooting at a Newtown, Conn. elementary school sent shockwaves through communities. Some lobbied for more school resource officers in elementary and middle schools. How do you feel about SROs? Are they needed? And if so, why and for what types of schools?

McDonald: A shooting in a public place results in shock and horror. Newtown was tragic because it involved children in a place we'd like to consider “guaranteed safe." There are no such areas. By taking a collective responsibility for our safety, we'll have a positive effect in reducing or mitigating the risk of random senseless violence. The safety and security protocols in the schools and their adherence to them are the responsibility of the superintendent. Last year they reduced unauthorized access by installing security features, a laudable effort. SROs' responsibilities require training and commitment, but they cannot ensure acts of violence won't occur and their worth is measured more than just to serve as a counter-measure to school shootings. I have SROs in high schools, soon all middle schools, but not elementary schools. Through the implementation of our “Adopt a School” initiative, we have uniformed deputies dropping in at schools for unannounced visits – an initiative supported by teachers and parents. The best way to mitigate violence involves community partnerships that identify problems early. Spending over a million more dollars on SROs isn't the best utilization of resources based on realistic threat analysis. Nor is getting tied to more grants.

Brown: School resource officers are vital to protecting our children in our schools. We are not immune from a terrible tragedy like what happened with the school shootings in Columbine, Newtown and many others. Most of these schools did not have deputies in place as a preventive measure. One of my most important goals if elected sheriff is to provide that security, by placing resource officers back in our middle schools and then working to make our elementary schools safer. We need to have the same security in all our schools as is now provided in our high schools.

Summey: While I was at the Henderson County Sheriff's Office I supervised the school resource officer program for several years. The key word in this job title is “resource.” I absolutely feel there is a need for them in our schools, and school security is also one of the focus points of my campaign. Having an SRO in an elementary school can have a positive impact on a young person's life. At the same time, it is the law enforcement agency's responsibility to be sure to pick the right employee for this job. It is way more than just being an armed security guard, as some would suggest. An SRO can be a deterrent to student-on-student crime at the school during regular hours and sporting events. The SRO can also build the one-on-one relationships with students and teachers that will allow the ability to solve problems before they start. An effective SRO also has the ability to work with educators, parents to enable the students to make informed, responsible decisions. The SROs can also become DARE instructors within the schools. The DARE program is another effective instructional program that can be taught within the schools.

School resource officers aren't cheap. How would you propose to fund the officers without putting an extra tax burden on residents?

McDonald: I believe that I have demonstrated already, the most reasonable and cost-effective way to protect our schools based on current and short-term anticipated threat levels. Should the threat level change, I would take appropriate actions based on current and specific information. As far as “putting retired cops and former military people with weapons” in schools, let's ask the superintendent and his teachers and principals what they think about that. There was a comment made by one of my opponents who sees this as a viable solution, that if it was good enough to pass through the legislature, then it must be a good idea. To that line of thought, I would say this. If the “acid test” for the reason and logic of any particular piece of legislation rests in the fact that it came from Raleigh, then we are all to be pitied indeed. Again, freedom and security both come from the strength of a community to stand up and rally together for what is good. People working together in concert with other affected interests, and with a common and noble goal, can bring about change.

Brown: Placing school resource officers in our schools can be accomplished by creating a volunteer school safety resource officer program in cooperation with the local school board at minimal cost to the taxpayer. This program was established by law in 2013 by our N.C. General Assembly under N.C.G.S. 162-26, which allows a sheriff to create a program using qualified special deputies who are non-salaried volunteers to provide security in our schools. These sworn special deputies would undergo the same background investigation requirement and firearms qualification as well as other intensive training as a full-time deputy would receive. We can recruit for these positions from within our own community of retired local, state and federal law enforcement professionals who still have a high quality of service to provide to our community. Our children, parents and educators deserve the very best when it comes to safety in our schools.

Summey: In speaking with parents and other members of our community over the last several years, I believe the need is there to have SROs in our elementary and middle schools. My proposal is to work with our school board and county commissioners to create a short-term and long-term plan to implement these positions. I would propose pursuing grants to help reduce the cost. These grants are not guaranteed and the process will typically gauge the need for funds based on school crime rates, numbers of disadvantaged children and the population of the county. Typically the grants are match-required and eventually the cost would be absorbed by the county. I know that there has been some discussion about recent legislation that was passed allowing sheriffs and chiefs to create a volunteer SRO program within a given public school system. There is no sworn position in law enforcement, whether full-time, part-time, or volunteer, that does not incur cost. Specialized training on social and cognitive development of children is required for SROs, benefits, duty gear, vehicles, etc… all cost money. These costs are eventually paid for by the tax payer through the department's budget.

<p>In the May 6 Republican primary, voters will choose from three candidates who are running for the position of Henderson County sheriff: incumbent Charlie McDonald and challengers Michael Brown and Erik Summey. The candidates recently answered questions from the Times-News about why they are running, crime reduction efforts and school resource officers. </p><p>More information about the My 6 primary and early voting can be found at www.hendersoncountync.org/elections or by calling 828-697-4970.</p><p></p><p><b>Why are you running?</b></p><p><b>Charles McDonald:</b> I am running because of a deep conviction that I am in this position for a cause greater than myself, and I feel that I am the only man to carry forward the great work that we have begun in my first two years in office. We are in the process of implementing effective organizational change, modern leadership practices and professional development of our employees in all areas. We have brought accountability to the forefront, starting with leadership. We are well into a process of change and renewed commitment to customer service. We have begun to properly gather statistics and data in order to better direct our resources and agency focus to specific problem solving. Already, this has yielded a 28.86 percent reduction in residential breaking-and-entering and larcenies. We have established rigorous but effective hiring standards and put in place promotional and bonus processes that reward exceptional work and motivation over the old system of “promotion by tenure.” I am running because I am the only candidate with the proven leadership, vision and courage to finish what has been started. I have worked tirelessly for the past two years to earn your support and confidence.</p><p></p><p><b>Michael Brown:</b> I chose a career in law enforcement with the ultimate goal of serving my community. I am a lifelong resident of Henderson County and the third generation of my family to serve this county in law enforcement. I earned a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from WCU and have been in state law enforcement for 19 years. I am currently a senior state trooper with the NCSHP. I am married to my beautiful wife Lynn and have three children, Erica, Jessie and a newborn baby Jezreel Grace.</p><p></p><p><b>Erik Summey:</b> My decision to run for sheriff of Henderson County did not happen overnight. I worked at the Henderson County Sheriff's Office for 17 years from 1989 to 2006. The majority of my time there was spent working in a supervisory capacity as a sergeant and lieutenant. I have been at the Fletcher Police Department for over five years, the last three years I have been the chief of police of the department.</p><p> </p><p><b>What are your goals?</b></p><p><b>McDonald:</b> My goals are to continue the process that we have embarked on to enhance our capacity to gather and analyze data, and develop effective strategies to reduce specific crimes. We will continue to develop inspirational leaders and hire the most qualified personnel as we set in place a new culture of professionalism that will not easily be undone. We will continue to increase our involvement with citizen groups and community partnerships by offering education and support in disaster preparedness, community/security initiatives, and law enforcement support. The office of sheriff is culturally and historically unique regarding its purpose and its relationship with its community. We are its sons and daughters, its brothers and sisters. We are of, and not over, our county. Our effectiveness rests in community trust and support. It is only with that support that we can be “the blue ring around our community” defending against lawlessness and all threats to our safety and well-being.</p><p></p><p><b>Brown:</b> This is an excellent opportunity for the citizens of the county to elect a sheriff for the future, who will serve the people of this county for many years to come. We have had five sheriffs in the last 10 years including the current interim sheriff. I want to bring a sense of security to our community and the men and women of the sheriff's office to improve morale within the department. My goal is to provide the most professional, quality law enforcement service to the citizens of Henderson County while being a good steward of your tax dollars. I believe the position of sheriff demands unsurpassed character and integrity. I hold myself to a high ethical standard and will earn your trust and confidence as sheriff.</p><p></p><p><b>Summey:</b> I believe there are better ways the Sheriff's Office can be managed to support the employees as well as the community. The department needs to be structured to provide an appropriate amount of women and men working on patrol, investigations, and the communications division. I will give the autonomy to the department heads and supervisors to run their divisions and teams as they see fit. My campaign has five focus points which are to review animal control and enforcement, enhanced efforts on drug enforcement and drug-related crime, fiscal responsibility, courthouse security and school safety, and establishing a victim's services coordinator.</p><p> </p><p><b>What type of crime do you see posing the biggest threat to our community, and how do you propose to combat it?</b></p><p><b>McDonald:</b> The crimes are drugs, violence, thefts and neglect of children and dependents. I believe these are the results of a failure of society to stand together against what is wrong, and coming together for what is right. There is a tragic combination of apathy, a sense of helplessness, and an over-reliance on others to fix our problems. Our tendency, as a society, is to look the other way, to avoid rational confrontation and hope that someone else will take care of the problem. The issues with drugs, domestic violence and other crimes will only be effectively stymied by a collective effort by good and moral people who will partner with others, including law enforcement, teachers, pastors, rabbis, business and community leaders, to say “No further! We are taking back what is rightfully ours!” It won't happen overnight, but the collective good can overcome that which is arrayed against it when good people stand up and together for a noble cause. After I am elected sheriff, I intend to move forward to encourage more talented and skilled people from within our community, many who may be retired, to bring their talents and time and pure motives, to the service of Henderson County and its future.</p><p></p><p><b>Brown:</b> I believe drug and property crime are at the forefront of issues facing our community. I will re-allocate personnel from seven deputies per shift to nine per shift to increase the number of officers on patrol, who answer calls for service, to enhance patrol coverage and reduce response time in a proactive effort to reduce crime. This can be accomplished by re-allocating deputies from top heavy administrative positions to fill critical, high priority positions. I will re-establish the criminal interdiction team and assign more officers to the investigations unit. I will work to create a drug diversion investigator position to enforce laws pertaining to the illegal use and distribution of prescription medication. I would also work to increase the partnerships we have with the local police departments in the county and the state Highway Patrol in a combined effort to reduce the crimes being committed against our citizens in this county. I will put renewed emphasis on community involvement through Crimestoppers and neighborhood watch programs.</p><p></p><p><b>Summey:</b> In Henderson County the drug problem has been, and continues to be, the biggest threat. Over the last 20 years the estimate has typically been that 80-85 percent of the property crime in our county is committed by persons with an addiction to a controlled substance. I have several ways to combat this problem. I worked in and was a supervisor in the narcotics unit at the Sheriff's Office from 1993-2003. I know that the department can do more to combat the distribution of controlled substances coming into our county. During that 10-year period, we worked with the DEA and conducted several historical drug conspiracy cases. These cases are time-consuming, but we focused on, arrested, charged and convicted many persons right here in our community who were responsible for bringing cocaine/crack cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana into our county. The other side to combat the drug problem in our community is through educating our young people of the dangers of drug and alcohol abuse. I will enhance the DARE program to make it more effective in our schools and I will keep the summer DARE camp program. I will also work on an initiative called Drug Free Community project.</p><p> </p><p><b>The 2012 shooting at a Newtown, Conn. elementary school sent shockwaves through communities. Some lobbied for more school resource officers in elementary and middle schools. How do you feel about SROs? Are they needed? And if so, why and for what types of schools?</b></p><p></p><p><b>McDonald:</b> A shooting in a public place results in shock and horror. Newtown was tragic because it involved children in a place we'd like to consider “guaranteed safe." There are no such areas. By taking a collective responsibility for our safety, we'll have a positive effect in reducing or mitigating the risk of random senseless violence. The safety and security protocols in the schools and their adherence to them are the responsibility of the superintendent. Last year they reduced unauthorized access by installing security features, a laudable effort. SROs' responsibilities require training and commitment, but they cannot ensure acts of violence won't occur and their worth is measured more than just to serve as a counter-measure to school shootings. I have SROs in high schools, soon all middle schools, but not elementary schools. Through the implementation of our “Adopt a School” initiative, we have uniformed deputies dropping in at schools for unannounced visits – an initiative supported by teachers and parents. The best way to mitigate violence involves community partnerships that identify problems early. Spending over a million more dollars on SROs isn't the best utilization of resources based on realistic threat analysis. Nor is getting tied to more grants.</p><p></p><p><b>Brown:</b> School resource officers are vital to protecting our children in our schools. We are not immune from a terrible tragedy like what happened with the school shootings in Columbine, Newtown and many others. Most of these schools did not have deputies in place as a preventive measure. One of my most important goals if elected sheriff is to provide that security, by placing resource officers back in our middle schools and then working to make our elementary schools safer. We need to have the same security in all our schools as is now provided in our high schools.</p><p></p><p><b>Summey: </b> While I was at the Henderson County Sheriff's Office I supervised the school resource officer program for several years. The key word in this job title is “resource.” I absolutely feel there is a need for them in our schools, and school security is also one of the focus points of my campaign. Having an SRO in an elementary school can have a positive impact on a young person's life. At the same time, it is the law enforcement agency's responsibility to be sure to pick the right employee for this job. It is way more than just being an armed security guard, as some would suggest. An SRO can be a deterrent to student-on-student crime at the school during regular hours and sporting events. The SRO can also build the one-on-one relationships with students and teachers that will allow the ability to solve problems before they start. An effective SRO also has the ability to work with educators, parents to enable the students to make informed, responsible decisions. The SROs can also become DARE instructors within the schools. The DARE program is another effective instructional program that can be taught within the schools.</p><p> </p><p><b>School resource officers aren't cheap. How would you propose to fund the officers without putting an extra tax burden on residents? </b></p><p><b>McDonald:</b> I believe that I have demonstrated already, the most reasonable and cost-effective way to protect our schools based on current and short-term anticipated threat levels. Should the threat level change, I would take appropriate actions based on current and specific information. As far as “putting retired cops and former military people with weapons” in schools, let's ask the superintendent and his teachers and principals what they think about that. There was a comment made by one of my opponents who sees this as a viable solution, that if it was good enough to pass through the legislature, then it must be a good idea. To that line of thought, I would say this. If the “acid test” for the reason and logic of any particular piece of legislation rests in the fact that it came from Raleigh, then we are all to be pitied indeed. Again, freedom and security both come from the strength of a community to stand up and rally together for what is good. People working together in concert with other affected interests, and with a common and noble goal, can bring about change.</p><p></p><p><b>Brown:</b> Placing school resource officers in our schools can be accomplished by creating a volunteer school safety resource officer program in cooperation with the local school board at minimal cost to the taxpayer. This program was established by law in 2013 by our N.C. General Assembly under N.C.G.S. 162-26, which allows a sheriff to create a program using qualified special deputies who are non-salaried volunteers to provide security in our schools. These sworn special deputies would undergo the same background investigation requirement and firearms qualification as well as other intensive training as a full-time deputy would receive. We can recruit for these positions from within our own community of retired local, state and federal law enforcement professionals who still have a high quality of service to provide to our community. Our children, parents and educators deserve the very best when it comes to safety in our schools.</p><p></p><p><b>Summey:</b> In speaking with parents and other members of our community over the last several years, I believe the need is there to have SROs in our elementary and middle schools. My proposal is to work with our school board and county commissioners to create a short-term and long-term plan to implement these positions. I would propose pursuing grants to help reduce the cost. These grants are not guaranteed and the process will typically gauge the need for funds based on school crime rates, numbers of disadvantaged children and the population of the county. Typically the grants are match-required and eventually the cost would be absorbed by the county. I know that there has been some discussion about recent legislation that was passed allowing sheriffs and chiefs to create a volunteer SRO program within a given public school system. There is no sworn position in law enforcement, whether full-time, part-time, or volunteer, that does not incur cost. Specialized training on social and cognitive development of children is required for SROs, benefits, duty gear, vehicles, etc… all cost money. These costs are eventually paid for by the tax payer through the department's budget.</p>